The weekly messenger., 1887-01-22
TURNING BLACK.
Dare AND FATAL AFFLICTION
OF AN INDIANIaN.
u;s Skin Changing Gradually from
white to Black-Previous Sim
liar Cascs-The Malady known
as Addison's Disease, Etc.

Tn Rising Sun, Ind, on Sunday morn
inc. saws recent issue of the Chicago
Er,N. death brought to close a case
vbich has attracted keen interest and
vide.spread attention, not only among
the medical fraternity of that portion,
but al,o of Cincinnati. whittier the pa
teut went q short time since for treat
ment. The name of the man was Ste
phen f. Seward. He died of Addison's
disease.
The remarkable feature of Stewards
cas- was the gradual supervention of
the discoloration of the skin, which. al
though originally of fair complexion,
eventually gave him the appearance o.
perfect type of full-blooded African.
The nature of this case was not compre-
hended until he visited the clinic of Drs.
Rspsohoff and Whitaker at the Ohio
Medical College in Cincinnati, when the
case was recognized rs one of Addi-ols
disease, or "bronzed skim" Seward
was sing'e man, and at the time of his
death twenty eight years old. He came
of very healthy stock, both of his parents
being still alive, and his ancestors hav-
ing all re ched round old age He
was employed up to six month ago as a
hborer on his fathers farm.
lie was a man of fine physique and
great strength, and up to that line had
been able to perform an immense days
work. About that time he began to no.
tice that a couple of hours eXertion in
the field was followed by an unaccount-
able sense of WEAKNESS Within two
months after the beginning of his is
ease this Inconvenience had increased to
such an extent as to unfit him for his
work. About this time there was q
gradual change in the color of his skin.
Before this discoloration be was "A blonde,
of fair complexion, light hair and gray
eyes. In the beginning lis face became
the color of ashes. He grew darker and
darker, until at length he became pro-
aounced black, large quantities of the
coloring matter being deposited on the
skin of the face, neck, shoulders, hands
and forearms. and subsequently in all
parts of the integument. The nucons
membrane of the lips. tongue and of the
mouth participated in this discoloration.
The physical appearance of the patient
did not otherwise ind cate the gravity oi
the disease. The muscles retained theiI
development, and there was but little in.
anition. In the last four weeks a rapid
change for the worse set in. and death
resulted in little over six months after
the inception of the disease. Tnis wa.
an unusually rapid course, for, rs rule
patients who suifer from this disease lin
ger for from two to five years, but al
ways with the grave as the inevitable
Altogether not more than 200 cases Of
this peculir disease could be collected
from medical literature. The disease i!
one of comparatively recent recognition
as no well-marked case is reco 'ded pre-
vious to 1925, when Loebstein. of Paris
discovered the first known instance. TIL,
name by which it is generally known
AddisOn's djsease--wasg given it after DR.
Addison, of London, who in 1o5J colIec
ted eleven cases, only four of which
however, strictly belong to this category
1t was Dir. Addison who first recogni &c
the fact that the peculiar discolor
cd condition of the skin is du,
to diseased condition of the supra
renal capsules, minute bodies situated
above the kidneys, the physiological
character of which has not yet been es
tablished. In Addison's disease thes,
bodies referre to arc invariably found t.
be the seat of Inflammation, of consump
ton or of cancer. 1t is for this reason
that the disease invariably proves fatal
"Bronze skin may be said to lie dis
ease of the lahoring class. Those whc
WELD the AK and tell with the shovel ar
almost always its victims 1t is for thi
reason that it attacks the male nearl,
twice as often rs the female. Ofthe 1S;
cases recently collect, d by Greenhow'
1le occurred in males and sixtyfour fl
fpn aIoe 18th &ha s.hrnn ,